Inclusive and responsible innovation coming full circle
OTTAWA—To say that trendy titles for creative ideas are making a comeback in policy circles would be an understatement. The semiotics surrounding this embrace for knowledge, innovation, and technology are quite rich. Inclusive, sound, responsible, open, transparent, citizen-led, human-centric are just some of the monikers now appearing on the global stage. Take, for example, the […]
Heritage Minister Joly’s cultural plan easy politics, but thin policy
Heritage Minister Melanie Joly knew a political millstone when she saw it, and decided not to order Netflix and similar services to start collecting sales tax from subscribers in her government’s new cultural policy. Canadian cable companies, the digital streaming service’s competitors, denounced that decision after the cultural policy was announced last week—after all, they […]
Ukrainian credo comes with a price
DONETSK REGION, UKRAINE—I’m not as good a runner as I used to be. This came somewhere between the ninth and first floors of a murky, bomb-ravaged building at the edge of no-man’s land in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine. I began scrambling downstairs after our sentinel yelled “Run!” I did not ask why, nor linger to […]
Canadians deserve better federal leadership on nuclear disarmament
During House of Commons Question Period on Sept. 20, NDP leader Thomas Mulcair asked why the government was opposed to the new UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, opened that day for signature at the UN General Assembly—while “leaving the door open to participating in an ineffective, dangerous” American Ballistic Missile Defence system. […]
How North Korea has impacted Japan’s election
TOKYO—The North Korean crisis has thrown Japan’s beleaguered Prime Minister Shinzo Abe a lifeline. But it is a slippery one. Just three months ago, Abe was in the political doldrums. A series of scandals, including one involving a dodgy land sale, dogged him. His attempts to resuscitate Japan’s moribund economy had failed. Polling showed his […]
Bridging the gap between researchers and industry is the secret sauce of innovation
What drives innovation? The curiosity of a researcher who makes a discovery with the potential to transform lives, or the entrepreneur who sees a market need and sets out to find a solution? Surely the answer is both. Breakthrough research can take years to be translated into useful applications. Likewise, a business person who identifies […]
Feds should be proactive on UN report that slams Canada for its history of racist policies
HALIFAX—A shocking and damning report to the UN Human Rights Council says racism against black people in Canada “lies at the core” of many Canadian institutions. We’ve known that for decades and absolutely nothing has been done about it, but now the Government of Canada has the perfect reason to be proactive. An international call […]
There’s a different kind of economic shock at work today
TORONTO—Economies have to contend with periodic shocks. A sharp increase or a steep decrease in the price of oil is one kind of shock. A rapid escalation or fall in the exchange rate is another. A financial crisis is a third example and we have had to deal with all three at one time or […]
Canadian cities’ pursuit of Amazon may be naïve or cynical but also definitely hopeless
OTTAWA—Canadian cities, similar to their American counterparts, are clamouring to attract Amazon’s new second headquarters (HQ2). Many of our civic leaders sound like they actually believe that their cities are in the running. They most certainly are not. This is not to say that Amazon wouldn’t consider a Canadian city, but rather that the packages […]
We need to listen to Inuit on global issues, says Ottawa reader
Re: “True North and true Nordic, new opportunities for global solutions,” (The Hill Times, letter to the editor, Sept. 18, p. 8). I was pleased to read the joint letter by the ambassadors of the Nordic countries in Ottawa in support of the prestigious Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto. This […]
